GOVERNMENT PLANS FOR POST-ATTACK FOOD PROCESSING, STORAGE, AND DISTRIBUTION 



Sufficient food for survivors probably will be on 

 hand throughout the Nation following a nuclear attack, 

 but the principal problem will be moving it from stor- 

 age or the processing plant to consumer areas where 

 and when it is needed. Emergency food management 

 preparedness, therefore, is directed at three basic 

 objectives: 



1. Conservation and orderly use of sur- 

 viving food supplies. 



2. Processing of raw food stocks into 

 the form suitable for consumption or re- 

 duction of perishability. 



3. All possible assistance in maintaining 

 the orderly distribution of food for the 

 surviving population, our military require- 

 ments, and those of our allies. 



The responsibility for emergency food management 

 has been assigned by the Secretary of Agriculture to 

 USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service. The AMS 

 job is to work with the food industry in planning 

 means of conserving food, getting it processed and dis- 

 tributed properly following a nuclear attack, and help- 

 ing in {>ost-attack maintenance or restoration of proc- 

 essing, storage, handling and distribution facilities to 

 keep food moving. 



The responsibilities of AMS extend from the farm 

 gate through the wholesaler level in the distribution 

 chain. By agreement with individual States, a part of 

 these responsibilities will be shared by some State gov- 

 ernments, but States will be primarily concerned with 

 mass-feeding and with distribution of food at the retail 

 level, development of consumer rationing programs and 

 other plans necessary to assure equitable distribution 

 of consumers' supplies. 



As is the case with AMS, other agencies of the U.S. 

 Department of Agriculture have been assigned emer- 

 gency duties which parallel their regular functions. In 

 anticipation of communications difficulties in a post- 

 attack period, USDA State and County Defense Boards 



have been established to function independently if nec- 

 essary. The executive directors of the Agricultural 

 Stabilization and Conservation Service State offices are 

 chairmen of the USDA State Defense Boards. County 

 ASCS office managers serve as chairmen of USDA 

 County Defense Boards. Members of the boards at 

 both levels include locally situated employees of major 

 agencies of the Department. 



The food industry's role in a national emergency is a 

 relatively simple one — to continue processing, storing 

 and distributing food to meet the Nation's needs. The 

 Government, even vdth all the facilities at its disposal, 

 cannot produce, process, store and distribute the food. 

 These tasks can be accomplished only by determined 

 and effective efforts of farmers and food processing 

 and handling concerns. But the Government can help 

 the food industry to meet the challenges posed by the 

 emergency, and this is the purpose of the food 

 management program. 



The emergency program will consist of four princi- 

 ples of food management: 



1. Conservation. A temporary "freeze" will be 

 placed on food sales and deliveries in the immediate 

 post-attack period, to prevent unwise usage while the 

 Government and food industry take stock of the situa- 

 tion. This freeze may be expected to continue until it 

 is determined how much food is available, how long it 

 would last, when and where more can be obtained, 

 when and where processing materials and services can 

 be obtained, and what kind of emergency actions have 

 to be taken to co{>e with dislocations and stoppages. A 

 considerable list of foods will be exempt from this prin- 

 ciple, particularly foods in imminent danger of spoilage 

 for which the best conservation would be immediate 

 use. 



2. Using perishables first. Conservation of 

 canned foods and other non-perishables will be empha- 

 sized while perishables such as fresh meats, fish, milk 

 and produce are available. An effort will be made 

 to preserve perishables which exceed immediate needs, 



693-444 O— 63- 



